In order to justify higher prices EstroBlock website claims other DIM supplements are useless since they are not absorbed properly. Their words: \u201cMost other brands use what is called crystalline DIM which has almost no absorbtion into the body.<\/em>\u201d They also claim 500% higher absorption than other brands.<\/p>\n I can\u2019t say for sure, but it looks like they are using a patented form of DIM called Bio-Response DIM (BR DIM). Human studies comparing absorption rates between normal and Bio-Response DIM haven\u2019t been published, apparently some have been presented in medical conferences. One study in mice found BR DIM had 150% better bioavailability than normal DIM.<\/p>\n While it\u2019s true that BR DIM has better bioavailability it doesn\u2019t mean that other DIM supplements would be useless.<\/p>\n While they don\u2019t directly claim it, the EstroBlock website strongly implies that their supplement can prevent breast and other cancers – as well as help you to lose weight and cure acne. One of the most prominent headlines on their home page reads \u201cScientifically proven to protect you<\/em>\u201d, under which has a headline reading \u201cCancer protection<\/em>\u201d. The copy further reinforces the idea that the supplement can protect against cancer.<\/p>\n Given the claims you would think that the section titled \u201cJournal references<\/em>\u201d contains several many, or at least some, studies showing that the supplement can indeed protect against cancer.<\/p>\n So you would think. Alas, that\u2019s not the case. Not even close.<\/p>\n While the papers they feature on the \u2018Journal references\u2019 page have impressive titles, such as \u201cIndole-3-carbinol and prostate cancer<\/em>\u201d and \u201cTargets for indole-3-carbinol in cancer prevention<\/em>\u201c, there\u2019s nothing there that shows EstroBlock actually prevents cancer, or any other disease, in humans.<\/p>\n There are some preliminary human studies that show shifts in estrogen metabolites in people taking DIM. But it\u2019s not clear whether that affects disease outcomes.<\/p>\n Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center page on DIM<\/a> says this:<\/p>\n Diindolylmethane is a compound found in cruciferous vegetables including broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower. It showed anticancer effects in laboratory and animal studies. However, human studies are limited.<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Out of 100 cancer cures that show promise in test tube and animal studies maybe 1 has any potential as actual treatment, and that\u2019s when you are lucky. The scientific literature is littered with promising cancer cures that, for whatever reason, didn\u2019t work in humans.<\/p>\n Will DIM work as cancer treatment in humans? It may, but then again it may not. Nobody knows yet. It\u2019s true that it shows promise and the National Institutes of Health is currently testing it in humans, but until those studies are complete we just don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n The problem is that the EstroBlock website gives an impression of scientific legitimacy and support when that\u2019s not even remotely the case.<\/p>\n I can think of two reasons for this. One, they are clueless and have just compiled a list of studies without understanding what they mean. Or, they outright deceive people, knowing full well that the vast majority of their readers are impressed with a long list of complicated looking references.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not sure which is worse.<\/p>\n One of their more ridiculous claims is that excess estrogens cause acne. Have they been completely asleep for the past 2 decades when a study after study has shown that it\u2019s androgens, male sex hormones, that cause acne – not estrogens!<\/p>\n There\u2019s very little research on how estrogens affect acne, but all the research points to estrogens protecting against acne<\/strong>, probably by opposing the effect androgens have on the skin, which is the reason why doctors prescribe birth control pills for women with acne.<\/p>\n Role of hormones in acne vulgaris<\/a> by Arora, et al. had this to say about estrogens (emphasis mine):<\/p>\n A case control study conducted in north Indian population reported l<\/strong><\/i>ow serum estrogen levels in patients with acne vulgaris<\/i><\/strong> as compared to controls. Also, when a <\/i>woman’s estrogen levels decline<\/i>,<\/i><\/strong> as they do just before the beginning of a menstrual cycle, <\/i>acne may worsen<\/i><\/strong> [30]. This is also supported by the fact that acne is commonest at puberty because of the low level of estrogens and progesterone during the first few menstrual cycles.<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n As I said, research on the effect of estrogens on acne is still limited, but based on the currently available evidence reducing or \u2018detoxifying\u2019 estrogen is the last thing anyone with acne would want.<\/p>\n The relationship between xenoestrogens and sex hormones may not be as simple as some people would have you believe. For example Galloway et al<\/a>. found that BPA exposure was associated with slightly increased total testosterone level in men, yet no change was seen in women, and even in men there was no change in bioactive (free) testosterone.<\/p>\n Nobody denies that xenoestrogens may have negative health effects, especially in infants and young children, and perhaps some day science learns that xenoestrogens do cause acne. But until such time I\u2019m going to consider this just another made up disease promoted by alt-med and natural health quacks.<\/p>\n There\u2019s some preliminary research showing DIM can act as anti-androgen. Unlikely estrogens, there\u2019s a well established link between androgens and acne. In fact, people without functional androgen receptors in the skin don\u2019t get any acne.<\/p>\n There\u2019s also highly preliminary evidence to suggest DIM might turn down (down regulate in medical speak) the mTor pathway. As I wrote here<\/a>, the mTor pathway is sort of a master regulator in acne. It affects sebum production, skin cell growth and all the other factors known to affect acne.<\/p>\n If DIM\/EstroBlock works against acne, it\u2019s more likely because of it\u2019s anti-androgen anti-mTor effects. Whether it actually works against acne remains to be seen.<\/p>\n EstroBlock and DIM supplements are more than likely to be safe and unlikely to cause side effects for most people. However, you should keep in mind that all supplements, regardless of how natural they are, have the potential to cause negative side effects. A recently published case report<\/a> talks of a woman who developed blurry vision and severe headaches after taking DIM supplements for 2 months. Her vision started improving 2 weeks after stopping DIM and returned to normal after 8 weeks.<\/p>\n At the moment there\u2019s no evidence to show EstroBlock is good for anything. While DIM and I3C show promise in cancer prevention the evidence is too preliminary to conclude anything.<\/p>\n There\u2019s no evidence to support the notion that \u2018toxic extrogens\u2019 cause acne, in fact, all the evidence points to estrogens reducing acne. That said, it’s possible DIM reduces acne through other mechanisms, such as blocking androgens.<\/p>\n Of course lack of evidence doesn\u2019t in anyway mean that EstroBlock (or other DIM supplements) wouldn\u2019t work. It just means we don\u2019t know. The intellectually honest, not to mention ethical, choice would be to wait for validation in human studies before making grand claims about your products.<\/p>\n It seems that EstroBlock is more interested in appearing scientific than going through the scientific process of vetting and validating their claims.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Spend a few minutes online and you\u2019ll come off convinced EstroBlock is the next best thing since sliced bread. This \u2018miracle supplement\u2019 is all rage in various natural acne cure blogs and forums. Sellers claim it \u2018detoxifies toxic estrogens\u2019 and thus protects against breast cancer, gets rid of stubborn fat and, even cures acne. I … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9179,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"generate_page_header":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[93,104],"tags":[55,43,143,34,120],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8724"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11008,"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724\/revisions\/11008"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}How EstroBlock fools you about science<\/b><\/h2>\n
![\"Killing](\"https:\/\/acneeinstein.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/cells.png\")
<\/a>They feature tons and tons of extremely preliminary research. Test tube and animal studies examining possible mechanisms by which DIM might<\/i> prevent cancer. These are studies that, for example, look at the effect incubating individual cells in DIM has. It\u2019s highly dishonest to claim, even infer, from such studies that DIM would have similar effects in living humans.<\/p>\nEstroBlock for acne?<\/b><\/h2>\n
Other anti-acne mechanisms<\/h3>\n
Potential side effects<\/h2>\n
Conclusion<\/b><\/h2>\n